> Dock Equipment & Ramps > Dock Levelers
A dock leveler is a necessary piece of equipment that bridges the gap between the loading dock and tractor trailer. They facilitate the movement of fork lifts and pallet jacks from the truck to the loading dock. Loading dock levers are a basic requirement for any functional loading dock. Without one, it is difficult to load and unload semi-trailers of various heights. HOF Equipment Company carries an expansive range of dock leveler types, sizes, and capacities.
Loading Dock Levelers
Broadly, there are two types of loading dock levelers- Mechanical Dock Levelers and Electric Dock Levelers.
Mechanical Dock Levelers:
Mechanical dock levelers sit in front of the dock either a pit or are lagged to concrete. When a trailer arrives, a dock worker manually pulls a lever or chain that raises the lip and then sets it down on the truck bed forming a bridge to facilitate the easy loading or unloading of the truck using a forklift or pallet jack.
Electric dock levelers:
Electric dock levelers operate similar to mechanical dock levelers except the operation of extending and retracting the bridge is powered and accomplished by an electric hydraulic pump. These dock levelers are ideal for high traffic loading docks.
There are various types of loading dock levelers offered at HoF Equipment Company.
Pit Mounted Dock Levelers:
These loading dock levelers can be either manual (hand operated) or electric hydraulic. Pit mounted dock levelers are a robust option that are used when building a pit in front of the loading dock is possible and economically feasible. Manual units are pull chain operated to extend the bridge. In the case of a powered dock leveler the operator simply presses a “raise” button to activate the hydraulic pump to raise the deck at a controlled pace. When the button is released by the operator, the deck descends to rest on the trailer. When the truck pulls away the deck automatically returns to the retracted position.
Edge of Dock Levelers: This type of dock leveler is welded and/or bolted to the edge of the dock. These may also be manual mechanical or electric hydraulic operation. Edge of dock levelers are more compact, easier to install, and less expensive than pit mounted dock levelers. No pit is required.
Vestil Dock Levelers
HOF Equipment Company carries American made Vestil Dock Levelers in a large variety of standard and custom sizes and capacities. For powered dock levelers, motors are available various voltages. Here are some of the common beneficial features of Vestil dock levelers:
- Load-bearing capacities of dock levelers generally range from about 5,000 to 20,000 pounds.
- Large variety of sizes both standard and customer to fit your pit size.
- All our loading dock levelers are designed with safety in mind. The bridges have high-visibility handrails with fixed toe boards.
- In the case of line breakage, hydraulic cylinders have an emergency velocity fuse.
- There is an emergency stop button on powered units.
- Manual dock levelers feature smooth pull chain operation.
- Dock Levelers come with two laminated bumpers and two telescopic steel toe guards on both sides.
- There are lots of optional features to choose from when shopping for a dock leveler including vinyl weather stripping, curb angles, under deck foam insulation, etc...
HOF Equipment Company carries a variety of loading dock levelers and mounting accessories. Whether you need a simple mechanical dock leveler or have a high truck flow at your dock and would like an electric dock leveler, our goal is to make your purchase as easy as possible. HOF’s team of experts would be happy to aid you in selecting of a loading dock leveler. Please call or email us for further information.
